Google Automat to Spew Classifieds?

Susan Kuchinskas has details of Google’s rumored classifieds service, which will be called Google Automat (which will use the reported Google Base technology).

Google Automat, is a system for letting novice sellers develop and post classified ads that can be accessed through search and also placed on other Web sites as Google AdSense ads.

The report also includes details of Google’s answer to Paypal.

Automat also includes a mechanism for a variety of ways of paying for the ad. “We see advertisers — consumers and businesses — opening Google Purchase accounts, which can automatically debit regular banking accounts as the advertising campaign progresses,” Zappe wrote.

An image of the Google Purchases sign-up form includes spaces for users to enter their credit card and phone numbers. Classified Intelligence speculates that Google Purchases also could be used as the payment mechanism for consumer-to-business online transactions.